Ice ablation and meteorological conditions on the debris-covered area of Baltoro glacier, Karakoram, Pakistan
During the recent Italian expedition ‘K2 2004 – 50 years later’ (June–July 2004) on Baltoro glacier, Karakoram, Pakistan, glaciological field experiments were carried out on the debris-covered area of this high-elevation glacier. The aim was to investigate the ice ablation and its relations with debris thermal properties and meteorological conditions. Ablation measurements along the glacier up to about 5000m and within a dedicated test field were combined with meteorological data from two automatic weather stations located at Urdukas (4022ma.s.l.) and at K2 Base Camp (5033ma.s.l.). In addition, temperature measurements of the debris cover at different depth levels along the glacier
allowed the calculation of debris surface temperature and of the debris thermal resistance (R). Using the air temperature, the local mean lapse rate (0.00758 K/m) and the measured ablation, the degree-day factors (K) at different locations on the glacier were calculated. The ice ablation rates were related to debris thickness and elevation. They are typically on the order of 4cm/ day during the observation period.
However, it was found that the surface topography (slope, aspect) has an influence on the total ablation similar to that of the debris thickness. Thermal resistance of the debris cover and its distribution over the glacier were estimated. Finally, a best-guess estimate of the total meltwater production was calculated from available climate data.
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Citation proposal
Claudia Mihalcea (Università degli Studi di Milano) - Christoph Mayer (bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities) - Guglielmina Diolaiuti (Università degli Studi di Milano) (2011) . Ice ablation and meteorological conditions on the debris-covered area of Baltoro glacier, Karakoram, Pakistan. https://geoportal.mountaingenius.org/geonetwork/srv/api/records/fc3b33ce-beef-497f-b782-252fb65cc873 |
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- by Claudia MIHALCEA,1 Christoph MAYER,2 Guglielmina DIOLAIUTI,1 Astrid LAMBRECHT,Claudio SMIRAGLIA,1 Gianni TARTARI4 - 1Department of Earth Sciences ‘Ardito Desio’, University of Milan, Via Mangiagalli 34, I-20133 Milan, Italy; 2Commission for Glaciology, Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Marstallplatz 8, D-80539 Munich, Germany; 3Institute for Meteorology and Geophysics, University of Innsbruck, Innrain 52, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria; 4CNR–IRSA, Water Research Institute/National Research Council, Localita` Occhiate, I-20047 Brugherio, Milan, Italy
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- 2011-06-10T08:00:00
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- Annals of Glaciology 43
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- karakoram, debris covered glacier, buried ice ablation
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- SHARE , SEED
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